#1712
James Leprino
United States 88 years old
Overview
- Source of Wealth
- Cheese
- Industry
- Food & Beverage
- Residence
- Organization
- Chairman at Leprino Foods
- Education
- High School (High School Graduate)
- Children
- 2
Biography
James Leprino owns the world's largest mozzarella cheese maker, with $3.5 billion in estimated annual sales.
His Leprino Foods is the exclusive supplier of cheese to Domino's, Papa John's and Pizza Hut.
After graduating high school in 1956, he started working with his father full-time at his market.
In 1958, after larger chain grocery stores had forced the Leprino market to close, the Leprino Foods cheese empire started with $615.
Today, Leprino Foods has more than 50 patents. Those innovations are essentially how Leprino created the "pizza cheese" that Americans eat today.
About
When Leprino Foods became the exclusive cheese supplier to Domino's in 1996, the contract was more of a handshake than a legal document at just one page long.